The 9 Best Asus Routers, Tested by Experts - mowrytherabour1970

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Asus is known for making extremely variable routers that punch well above their weight class when it comes to everything from range and performance to sophisticated features and versatility. The best Asus routers offer to 5,000 square feet of coverage and top-notch speeds, and the company has eagerly embraced technologies like tri-banding Wi-Fi 6 and mesh wireless across its entire progressive lineup.

Thanks to the origin of its Republic of Gamers (ROG) line of merchandise back in 2006, Asus also makes both of the best gambling routers on the market, packing in powerful multi-core CPUs that all but egest network latency, asset a wealth of other game optimization features. This expertise spills all over into all of its routers, however, since any company that can build a router to sports meeting the demands of dynamical gamers can easily tackle things like streaming, video vocation, and security.

The best Asus routers too include AiProtection by Curve Micro stacked right in, with no subscription fees required. This gives you everything you motive right out of the box to protect your electronic network from malware and keep your kids unhurt online. AiMesh technology across well-nig all of its routers also lets you mix and match any combining of Asus router models to secure your whole home is bathed in strong wireless coverage. With their versatility and open entree to tweak all network feature imaginable, Asus' routers make especially great picks for anybody who wants to pee sure that they'll be able to configure their router to employment how they want it.

The Rundown

Offers the best balance of price, performance, versatility, and vagabon that you'll find in a forward-looking router.

An affordable way to dip your feet into the world of Wi-Fi 6 technology.

Excellent Wi-Fi 6 support and 10Gbps WAN ports stimulate this a top performer.

Tri-band WI-Fi 6 in an exceedingly versatile and holistic engage system.

The most powerful play router on the market right now, with a wealthiness of optimization features to ensure your games run fast.

A great pick for anybody looking a unpeasant-smelling-performance router for joint media and streaming Netflix in 4K.

Funding for Alexa and IFTTT integration makes this router a perfect fit in whatever stylish dwelling house.

Allows you to set up to 4 SSIDs to easily bring off certificate and bandwidth requirements.

Has so much a unique design that you'll forget it's a router.

What We The like

• Advanced Badger State-Fi 6 support

• Excellent functioning

• Eight LAN ports

What We Don't Like

• Simply Dual-Band Wisconsin-Fi

• Pricey

Asus AX6000 RT-AX88U Router Review

It can follow intriguing to find a router that strikes the perfect residual of price, performance, versatility, and range, but we think that Asus' RT-AX88U nails it along all quaternary counts, making it easily our top pick for the post. Patc some of Asus' otherwise routers may excel in specific areas like gaming or range, typical users wish be excited with what the RT-AX88U offers.

Backpacking in the latest 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 technology, the AX88U offers up to 6Gbps of bandwidth crosswise all channels, asset a staggering 5,000 square feet of coverage, devising it a great choice for flat the largest homes. Thanks to its four powerful beamforming antennas and 4x4 MU-MIMO support, it throne easily handle the needs of a busy family with multiple users streaming in 4K and gambling without slowing apiece other down.

Around back, the RT-AX88U packs in a large eight Gigabit Ethernet ports, and then you'll have hatful of room to hardwire in those devices that either lack wireless or simply need utmost performance. It also includes AiProtection by Trend Little to help protect you from online threats—with none ongoing subscription required.

"I was able-bodied to stream soaring definition Netflix to ii televisions happening my network while someone else was gaming, and various other phones and tablets were in use without any stuttering or slowdown." —Jeremy Laukkonen, Product Tester

Lifewire / Jeremy Laukkonen

What We Like

• Affordable Wisconsin-Fi 6 technology

• AiMesh support

• Smaller footprint

What We Don't Like

• Lacks USB ports

• Middling 2.4GHz performance

Asus' RT-AX55 is a great way to dip your ft into the world of Wi-Fi 6 technology without breakage the banking company. It's an peculiarly great prime for users in metier-dog-sized homes World Health Organization don't have many devices fashioning demands on internet bandwidth and aren't looking in advance features.

That doesn't mean it can't plow a interfering household, naturally, since OFDMA and MU-MIMO bear all the same makes sure that all one of your devices gets its fair-minded share of bandwidth without deceleration each other weak. Notwithstandin, its AX1800 military rank means that you're lone going to wealthy person about 1.8Gbps to share around your home—574Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and 1.2Gbps on the 5GHz side. That's still more than enough for a couple of devices to savor 4K streaming and online gaming.

While the RT-AX55 supports all of Asus' standard AiProtection and AiMesh features, it's a fairly spartan router by Asus' usual standards. Instead, Asus has gotten downfield to the core basics here to provide an affordable Badger State-Fi 6 router for users who don't need advanced features wish USB ports, wider 160MHz distribution channel support, or game traffic optimization. On the upside, however, it does support Asus' AiMesh technology, making it a great companion to a more powerful Asus router for those looking to expand their meshing coverage.

What We Like

• Dual 10Gbps Meshing Ports

• Unique Design

• Excellent Wi-Fi performance

What We Don't Like-minded

• Bulky design

• Internal fan

If you'ray looking for a Wi-Fi router that pulls out entirely the stops, then Asus' RT-AX89X is the one to acquire. While it doesn't come cheap, the higher Mary Leontyne Pric rag is easily even if you need a router that will be able to handle the busiest homes and quickest internet plans without skipping a beat.

Hold zero mistake, the RT-AX89X is a beast of a router, even by Asus' usual standards, and the project may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's hard to reason that it will make its presence known. The RT-AX89X is one of the most subject Wi-Fi 6 routers on the market today, with an array of eight coercive antennas delivering radical-fast wireless speeds that can easy grasp gigabit levels at close up chain.

The RT-AX89X also packs in an absolutely staggering assemblage of ports around the edges. There's a duet of 10Gbps Ethernet and SFP+ ports—a rare inclusion body on home routers that will have you more than ready for the fastest internet plans. These are joined by a walloping eight Gigabit Ethernet ports, and no to a lesser degree two 5Gbps USB 3.2 ports. That said, the RT-AX89U is a dual-band router, not tri-band, so even though it supports Asus' AiMesh engineering, we wouldn't recommend it for a wireless meshing organization. You can, however, usance the 10Gbps ports to link two or much of them around your home in a wired constellation to make an deadly stinky-performance Wi-Fi network.

What We Like

• Tri-band Wi-Fi 6

• Excellent coverage

• Selfsame versatile

What We Put on't Like

• Advanced settings potty be confusing

ASUS ZenWiFi XT8 AX6600 Review

Evening though nearly wholly of Asus' routers support its AiMesh technology, the ZenWifi XT8 represents the router maker's many holistic approach to mesh networking. It's a system that's expressly designed with units that work together to become greater than the sum of its parts.

While many mesh Wi-Fi systems focalize connected dumbing go through the user experience, the ZenWifi XT8 is one of the most hi-tech and highly configurable solutions we've one of these days seen. IT's a move that's not surprising for Asus, with its reputation for versatility, only it's still non common among engagement systems. To be clear, that doesn't mean that the XT8 is tough to set down up, but office users will love the ability to dig down beneath the configuration wizards and fine-tune this system to their centre's placid.

The system supports tri-ring Wi-Fi 6, with from each one unit delivering 2,750 square feet of coverage. This means that you could cover an 8,000-square-substructure home base with trey units. Plus, the system still supports Asus' AiMesh technology, so you stool also add just about any other Asus router into the mix. Top-grade of wholly, Asus' penchant for configurability means you bewilder to decide how to expend your Badger State-Fi bands, rather than forcing the router to bash it for you.

"After going through a a few routers before the ASUS ZenWifi, place setting up the ZenWifi was a tonic, sagittate get." — Rebecca Isaacs, Product Examiner

Lifewire / Rebecca Isaacs

What We Like

• Advanced Wi-Fi 6 support

• Passing truehearted performance

• Cutting-edge play features

What We Assume't Like

• Large step

• Expensive

• User interface toilet be a bit daunting

Asus ROG Exaltation GT-AX11000 Router Reexamine

Asus' GT-AX11000 is the most-ruling gaming router on the grocery store right right away, packing in the latest Wi-Fi 6 technologies with combined wireless throughput of adequate to 10Gbps thanks to its tri-band wireless.

From each one of the two 5GHz bands offers 4.8Gbps of bandwidth, with advanced band steering features that testament let you keep your gaming PC on a separate transmission channel to avoid beingness dragged down by other 5GHz devices along your network. The eight beamforming antennas can besides obtrude a strong enough signal to cut across a 5,000 sq ft home. Four Gigabit Ethernet ports around the second are joined by a special 2.5Gbps gaming port, so you can also hardwire your rig in for utmost carrying into action.

Where the GT-AX11000 really shines, however, is in the high-performance quad-pith CPU that powers its gaming optimisation features. There's full VPN keep, including Asus' VPN Fusion feature to keep your VPN up patc gaming without slowing things down, along with dynamic halting-focused QoS to prioritise your gaming dealings, and the WTFast Gamers Private Network (GPN) to micturate sure it e'er goes to the fastest game servers. The ROG Gamey Dashboard adds past gamer-centrical features suchlike Game Promote, Game IPS security measures, and route-optimized low latency servers on the GPN so you'll savour lag-free gaming.

"On the few occasions, I was able to chela back some rid of time for gambling, I was affected aside the built-in gamer-centric quality of service (QoS) features." —Jeremy Laukkonen, Product Tester

Lifewire / Jeremy Laukkonen

What We Alike

• Octad Gigabit Ethernet ports

• Deuce USB 3.0 ports

• Gamers Private Network

What We Don't Like

• Pricey

• Large footprint

Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300 Review

Although Asus' GT-AC5300 is billed as a gaming router—and IT's definitely zealous for that overly—the commanding-performance tri-band Wi-Fi makes it a top nibble for anybody superficial for a upper-performance router for their household internet activities.

Dual 5GHz bands and a one-person 2.4GHz band offer conjunctive throughput of 5,334Mbps, while MU-MIMO and beamforming antennas make reliable that all of your devices get upper limit bandwidth. As our examination determined, the resultant role is speedy and solid network performance for smooth Netflix 4K streaming throughout your interior, flat when someone else is gaming at the same clock time.

Eight Gigabit Ethernet ports approximately the back offer plenty of wired connectivity options, and two USB 3.0 ports will permit you wire up external hard drives to share your media using the built-in DLNA waiter. As with well-nig else Asus routers, you also get AiProtection powered by Trend Micro to protect you against malware and other cyberspace threats, constitutional VPN support, and a whole lo of civilised configuration options so power users can pinch radio performance and opposite settings.

"You essentially have a dedicated gaming Wi-Fi router occluded with the bandwidth you require to support other activities like streaming 4K contented." — Yoona Wagener, Product Tester

Lifewire / Yoona Wagener

What We Like

• Bang-up Wi-Fi 5 performance

• Alexa and IFTTT put up

• Very configurable

What We Don't Like

• Below average range

Asus RT-AC88U Gaming Router Review

While IT's not busy the latest Wi-Fi 6 technology, Asus' RT-AC88U is still a solid and well-semilunar router that packs in some pretty cool features at an affordable price, and enough performance and range for straight-grained a larger house. Dual-band Wi-Fi supporting the 802.11ac Wi-Fi 5 standard delivered speeds of up to 2.1Gbps on the single 5GHz band, plus 1Gbps connected the 2.4GHz side.

The four powerful beamforming antennas and MU-MIMO engineering science not only help it to pitch formidable roam, but IT's also competent to easily handle the streaming, gambling, and video calling needs of a dozen or many devices without breaking a sweat. You'll also find an impressive eight Gigabit Ethernet ports more or less binding, so thither's plenty of room to hardwire in.

The RT-AC88U makes a great choice for smart homes with its integration with Amazon Alexa and IFTTT, which lets you manipulate router settings with your vox and even tie it into your home mechanization routines. There's straight built-in support for Malus pumila's Time Machine backup feature, so Macintosh users can relate an external hard drive to the USB 3.0 embrasure and keep all MacBook in your household backed up wirelessly.

"A perfect fit in any smart dwelling, allowing you to prepare machine-controlled programs with a variety of smart devices." —Bill Dylan Marlais Thomas, Product Tester

Lifewire

What We Like

• Supports equal to four separate SSIDs

• Can be used Eastern Samoa a Wi-Fi extender

• Very affordable

What We Don't Like

• None 5GHz support

• Limited range

• No Gigabit Ethernet ports

Extraordinary of the great things about Asus is that the society still continues to fabricate and support many of its senior, lower-be routers, so if you're sounding for something really cheap for a small office, condo, Oregon even out fair-minded the bungalow, the RT-N12 makes an especially extraordinary pick.

While you're not active to flummox the fashionable duple-band Wi-Fi technologies at this price, the N12 does offer fast 300Mbps throughput on the 2.4GHz band, which should personify more than ample for the surfing, streaming, and video-calling necessarily of a single user or a inferior family. More importantly, however, IT can also be used as a Wi-Fi extender in either wired or wireless mode, so it's a really low-priced way to augment your main router and bring on wireless access into more areas of your home.

The RT-N12 likewise has some other interesting get up its arm. You can configure heavenward to four separate SSIDs with dynamic bandwidth management on each one—something that's almost unheard of in a router in this Price range. This lets you found multiple networks for visitors, guests, or even just to provide many controlled admittance for your kids, while also fashioning sure you appropriate enough bandwidth to deliver 4K cyclosis to your overbold TV.

What We Suchlike

• Nice, unequaled aesthetic

• Smart home features

• Extremely configurable

What We Father't Like

• Inactive storage speeds

• Design isn't for everyone

If you're looking for something eclectic in a Wi-Fi router, so Asus' Blue Spelunk makes for a really intriguing pick. Unlike most Asus routers, which generally look wish something out of a Syd Mead parade, the Blue Undermine is designed to be a conversation piece that could fit opportune into your rest home decor. The big hole in the middle creates a unique look, and as an added bonus, it can be set to shine different shades of depressed as the router does its affair.

Don't let its aesthetics fool you, though, as this little box is a surprisingly capable router in its class. It offers high bad grand execution and range when you consider that IT doesn't cause a single transmitting aerial protruding in whatsoever direction. It also delivers powerful AC2600 dual-banding Wi-Fi, reaching speeds of up to 1,733Mbps on the 5GHz channel, nonnegative the typical rig of four Gigabit Ethernet ports around the back, plus a exclusive USB 3.0 left for sharing a hard drive away operating theater printer.

It's also a cinch to set up thanks to an Asus smartphone app, while as wel including desegregation with Amazon Alexa and Asus' AiProtection security suite to hold back your home network protected from malware and your kids away from darker corners of the internet. Not only that, but it also supports the same AiMesh technology as other Asus routers. This makes it a zealous way to extend your network from one of Asus' bigger and bolder routers tucked away in your cellar or home office.

Final Verdict

The RT-AX88U hits the fresh spot for range, performance, features, and price, making it the best Asus router for most people. If you're looking at to get into Badger State-Fi 6 on a budget, nonetheless, the RT-AX55 makes a great way to get your feet wet without breakage the bank.

About Our Trusted Experts

Jesse Hollington is a independent author with terminated 10 years of experience writing about technology and three decades of experience in information technology and networking. Atomic number 2's installed, tested, and configured just active every type and brand of router, firewall, wireless access point, and network extender in places ranging from single-sept dwellings to office buildings. university campuses, and flat slide-to-glide all-inclusive-area network (Weak) deployments.

Jeremy Laukkonen is an skilled tech journalist with a background signal in self-propelled recreate that has taught him the importance of breakage down complex specialised subjects in understandable ways. He specializes in VPNs, antivirus, and home electronics, and manages his possess automotive blog connected the side.

Yoona Wagener has a background in content and technical writing. She has written for BigTime Software, Idealist Careers, and other puny technical school companies. Yoona enjoys helping people simplify processes. She has have providing technical support and serve support to end users, building websites for small business owners, and offering career advice to social-impact job seekers.

Bill Thomas is a Denver-settled self-employed author who covers technology, music, film, and gambling. They began writing for Lifewire in January 2020, but you can also find their work on TechRadar. Bill has also worked A an editor at Future.

Rebecca Isaacs has been writing for Lifewire since 2020, specializing in consumer tech, games, and networking.

FAQ

• Should you buy a Wi-Fi 6 router?

  For most people, there's credible no need to rush out and replace your current router with a Wi-Fi 6 version just still, as relatively few devices support this newest standard. Nevertheless, if you're in the market for a new router, we'd recommend taking the plunge into Wi-Fi 6, since it's going to be the mode ahead for new devices. It's already supported altogether of Malus pumila's newest iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks, along with Samsung's flagship smartphones and Sony's PlayStation 5, and in these cases, you'll get finer performance—especially on busy networks—and even developed the battery life on your mobile devices.
  

• What are the advantages of a gaming router?

  While almost any sopranino-public presentation router will do just fine for streaming and video calling, gaming requires a diverse kind of network performance known as low latency. True today's fast online games don't need nearly the same bandwidth as 4K streaming, but they do require a router that can process all the stake-and-forth traffic that passes between the gamer and game servers without delay. Gaming routers pack in omnipotent CPUs that relieve oneself sure your games run lag-free, so you won't find your games stall just as you're about to have those critical shots.
  

• How many Ethernet ports do you need?

  Wi-Fi technology has come a long way in recent geezerhood, thus you may find that in that respect's far less of a involve to hardwire devices into your router. While devices that don't admit WI-Fi, like desktop PCs, will naturally require to be plugged in, you'll in all likelihood find that game consoles, smart TVs, and laptops will do just fine on Wi-Fi, as long as you have a router that offers the range and bandwidth that you need. Almost routers include at the least four Ethernet ports, just you'll find some of the best Asus routers actually push that up to eight. Reasonable make sure they're Gigabit Ethernet ports, arsenic near the most budget class routers will declare oneself better Badger State-Fi execution than mere Dissolute Ethernet ports.

Lifewire / Rebecca Isaacs

What to Look for in an Asus Router

Range

The worst discovery is purchasing a top-of-the-line router only to find away that it can't adequately cover your property. Blazing-fast speeds are eager, but if your router stern't provide Wi-Fi to your entire home, on that point power not be a point. Ensure that the router can cover the comme il faut square footage requisite.

Speed

Are you sending emails, playing video games, or streaming videos? Not everyone's needs require routers with Eruca vesicaria sativ-fast speeds then consider how you habit your internet before purchasing. AC routers are currently the quickest available option, only those who aren't doing often gaming or video flowing should relieve be euphoric with the last generation N routers.

Smart Features

Routers are much more intelligent than they were days ago. Check for special abilities such as parental controls, built-in firewalls for protection, mechanized application access, and prioritization for significant traffic. Smart routers dedicate you the ability to make up completely in control of your Wi-Fi.

Lifewire / Yoona Wagener

Source: https://www.lifewire.com/best-asus-routers-4159861

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